With China's movie theater industry exploding, Korean movie theater chains are eyeing that market.
Korean movie theater or multiplex chains such as CGV, Megabox, and MK Pictures are rushing to open theaters in China by teaming up with local partners there, saying the pace of growth in the film industry there is very fast.
According to China's state-run movie promotion agency, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, movie ticket sales in China show an annual growth rate of between 20 and 30 percent between 2001 and 2005, while ticket sales jumped to 2.4 billion yuan (273.6 billion won) in 2006, compared with 1.5 billion yuan in 2004.
CGV, Korea's largest multiplex chain, was the first one to tap the Chinese market.
It set up a movie theater in Shanghai in a joint venture with Shanghai Film Group, the leading national film company of China in Oct. 2006.
"Shanghai CGV", the first international advancement of a Korea-based theater brand, is located at Daning International Commercial Plaza, a grand-scale government project in the heart of the fast-growing Jaibei District.
It has six theaters, including one VIP Theater, with a total of about 1,000 seats. The VIP Theater is similar to Korea's Gold Class and has 38 seats. It offers premium facilities and luxurious services just like first-class seats on airplanes.
China rates theaters like hotels and 'Shanghai CGV' was recognized as the highest five-star theater. Also, Dianping, an online forum where consumers share their experiences, has rated the Shanghai CGV as the best movie theater in Shanghai.
GGV says it is planning to further its steps to establish more CGV branded theaters throughout China and in other parts of the world. The opening of its second theater in Beijing within the first half of this year is on the cards.
In the long-term, GGV plans to tap the Southeast Asia and U.S. markets. In the latter case, CGV plans to open about 10 multiplexes in the Los Angeles area.
Megabox, another giant multiplex chain, is planning to open four more theaters in just one region of Beijing after its huge success with its first theater in 2007.
The upscale multiplex, located within a massive indoor mall in the high-tech Zhongguancun district of Beijing, contains eight screens and 1,700 seats and offers a range of services.
Also, MK Pictures, a Korean film distributor and China's the Poly Group launched a theater with six screens in Jiangzhou last year and plans to open four more by the end of 2008 in Beijing and Shanghai.
Midrange plans for 2008-2013 envision 40 venues, 320 screens and a 10% share of the overall Chinese box office.
Korean movie theater operators say they will keep making inroads to the Chinese market since there is still a lot of room to grow and they say in order to differentiate themselves with Chinese rivals and to Make It Big in China, the most important thing is to provide premium service like offering luxury seats, high-quality screens and issuing membership cards with special benefits.
By Han Aran
Korea.net Staff Writer
Source : www.korea.net... (  Arabic Chinese English French Japanese Korean Russian Spanish Vietnamese ) |
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